Ventete aH-1 helmet test – Folding helmet for urban cyclists

Test video summary

My summary

Who is this helmet for?

The Ventete aH-1 has been designed to offer flexibility to urban cyclists. The idea is to carry your folding helmet with you, and if you decide to use a bike or an electric scooter, a skateboard or rollerblades, all you have to do is inflate it in 30 seconds to ride in complete safety.

It’s in these hybrid, flexible uses that we understand the appeal of the aH-1. It’s not a helmet for long outings, it’s a helmet for the city. The Ventete aH-1 slips easily into the back of a backpack and can be forgotten.

That said, these same urban cyclists must be prepared to shell out a whopping €450 for a helmet that’s much heavier than a similarly-priced road helmet. Once you’ve spent €450, you’ll have to buy another helmet for longer rides, as the weight of the helmet, barely noticeable on short trips, becomes noticeable after a couple of hours.

Helmet presentation

A unique urban helmet

The Ventete aH-1 helmet is an innovative bicycle helmet that clearly stands out from all other helmets. It’s foldable and inflatable.

Instead of polystyrene, the main component of virtually all bicycle helmets, the Ventete aH-1 is an articulated helmet that inflates with a small electric pump and can be flattened and stored in a bag.

An innovation in the cycling world

The only one of its kind, the Ventete aH-1 is reminiscent of the airbag helmet worn around the neck by Hovding, an innovative Swedish company that went out of business in 2024. For the moment, Ventete has no competitors. Brands are developing similar models (such as Foldigo and Inflabli), but their products are not yet available on the market.

The Ventete aH-1 describes itself as micro-foldable, meaning that the volume of the helmet is reduced by 90% once deflated, which differentiates the product from foldable helmets, whose volume is generally reduced by only half.

Security

The Ventete aH-1 is certified to EN 1078, the European standard required for all bicycle helmets.

According to Ventete, the helmet offers better shock absorption and greater structural compression than conventional helmets, and therefore provides better protection in the event of linear or rotational impact, thus offering better protection against head trauma.

The helmet’s innovative design offers 25% greater shock absorption than traditional helmets, according to tests carried out by Imperial College London (Financial Times).

Given that most quality helmets are similar in terms of safety, offering a higher level of protection is a big step forward.

On the other hand, the Ventete aH-1 has no reflective components. In town, a black helmet without reflective strips is virtually invisible.

My Ventete aH-1 headset test

Instructions for use

The helmet comes with a pump, a charger and case. The bag is just big enough to hold the folded helmet.

It inflates via a Presta valve in 30 seconds with the electric pump, but you can also use a conventional bicycle pump (if it’s small, as the space between helmet and valve is minimal). Once on the head, it can be tightened with two small Velcro fasteners at the back.

To deflate, simply loosen the valve and press to release the air.

These processes are simple and work well, but the pump is very noisy. Indoors, I’d be afraid of disturbing the whole household, and on the street, of startling passers-by.

My impressions after several outings

I wore the helmet in town, on the road and while gravel riding , to test it as rigorously as possible. Even on hot days, I didn’t feel stuffy at all.

After several hours of use, I could feel the front of the helmet digging into my forehead. For my head shape, the Ventete aH-1 is only comfortable with a cap underneath.

I reported this discomfort to the Ventete team, whose marketing director replied that it was a frequent feedback and that the next iteration of the helmet would feature forehead padding.

Conclusion

For me, the innovation in terms of safety is the strong point of this helmet, the folding feature being a bonus.

Spending 450 euros on a helmet just for the city, simply to save yourself the trouble of carrying a conventional helmet, seems excessive. However, better protection in the event of an accident may justify the investment.

It may be worth waiting for competitors to enter the market and for the price to drop to make the Ventete aH-1 truly attractive from a quality-price point of view.